Live, their dedication to one another is crisper than their hair gel. The side room at the House of Blues isn’t even half full, but as Romans says to the shrieking crowd of about 150 teen girls (and a few eye-rolling boyfriends), “Just because you’re the smallest crowd we’ve ever played for doesn’t mean you’re not the loudest!” It’s an audience as forgiving of circumstances as the band are. “Kyle’s cute, and he’s a good singer,” said 16-year-old Corinne Saliba of nearby North Royalton. “He’s taller, too, so that’s, uh, useful.” It hardly matters that they play mostly new stuff padded with choice covers by Paul McCartney and Nick Lowe. Of the catchy new single, “Jenny,” 14-year-old Erin Folk from Westlake says, “I wish my name were Jenny.” She giggles, of course — what a clichéd thing to say! But her eyes say she knows I know it’s true.

HOW LOW CAN YOU GO? | February 10, 2009 "Turn down the bass!" a well-meaning fan finally yelled last Saturday night, about a half-hour into Murder by Death's sold-out performance downstairs at the Middle East.

¡VAMOS A ROCK! | January 28, 2010 'Rock en Español 2' rides a new East Coast wave of Latino music

PINK | FUNHOUSE | November 07, 2008 Everything about this good bad ol’ pop Cinderella’s fifth (!) album is tried, true, and tired.

CALL IT A COMEBACK | November 03, 2008 Alabama offspring Patterson Hood and Mike Cooley have been making raucous rock and roll together in one band or another for the past 23 years, about the same time it takes most offspring to grow up and get real jobs.